Mother: Wake school bus drops girl at different stop without warning

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Cary, N.C. — A Raleigh mother says her 6-year-old will no longer be riding a Wake County school bus after the girl was dropped off Wednesday at an unfamiliar stop.

With her mother and sister nowhere in sight, Destiny Sandifer said she told the bus driver that it wasn't her stop.

"He made me (get off the bus) because he didn't even care," she said. "I was crying."

Destiny's mother, Felisha Requer, said she is seething about the mix-up.

"I've never in my life seen a school system so disorganized," she said.

Her daughter, a first-grader at Dillard Drive Elementary School, is supposed to be dropped off at the intersection of Kent Road and Neeley Street. On Tuesday, Requer said, she put in a request to have Destiny let off at a stop closer to home – at the intersection of Gorman and Greenleaf streets, about one mile away.

She was told she would be notified if her request was approved. But on Wednesday, without warning, Destiny was dropped off at the new stop.

Requer said she was panicked. Destiny said she was angry.

"There is no organization at all," Requer said. She plans to file a formal complaint against the bus driver.

The school district's bus system has been rife with problems since traditional-calendar schools started last week. Parents have complained that buses are late, lost or non-existent, leaving students stranded at bus stops and at school or riding for hours to reach their destination.

Since traditional-calendar schools started last week, the district has put 27 additional buses in service, with six of those targeted to routes at Apex Elementary, Apex Middle, Baucom Elementary, Laurel Park Elementary, Turner Creek Elementary and Salem Elementary schools.

District spokeswoman Chris Mulder said Apex routes were 90 percent on time Friday, and that complaint calls continued to drop.

Trying 2 believeSep 13, 2012

"I've never in my life seen a school system so disorganized!"

leeloo67Sep 10, 2012

Agree with Angelmama13. My daughter had a similar bus problem on her first day a couple of years ago and nobody cared, not even the news outlets. Bottom line in this latest case is the driver did several wrong things - both in common sense and procedurally - and a child was left stranded, alone and vulnerable as a result. No flippan comment on the internet can reasonably defend that or twist that into anything else.

angelmama13Sep 10, 2012

frsandi - Don't let some of these people get to you. You did the right thing by bringing awareness to this situation and that's what is important. My daughter took part in a story on WRAL a while back to bring awareness to Type 1 Diabetes and most of the comments we got were criticizing how I looked and the fact that she was wearing make-up instead of appreciating the fact that she was willing to put herself out there to share a very important message. You sound like a good mom who cares about her own child as well as other children who may be affected by this situation. Ignore those who have nothing better to do than to pass judgement in ignorance.

ankzmomSep 10, 2012

"Every bus driver should know all kids/students by their names..." - charmclain

OK, sure, char. After two weeks each driver should know each kid by face and name. The teachers who stare at them all day don't even know each of them yet, and they're only dealing with what - that staggering load of 25 kids?storchheim

Actually the younger ones have tags stating their name and address just for this purpose so her idea isn't crazy. Takes a second to glance at the tags that are displayed prominently.

driverkid3Sep 10, 2012

@Tax Man re: so why would you put your kid on that bus with an 18 year old with no bus driving experience????

When I was going to school in the "old days", we had some high school students driving the bus. Never had problems with them.

frsandiSep 7, 2012

To think someone thinks it's about money? It's about the other children riding that bus with this man. I'm sure other parents would want to know there is someone driving without regard for their child's safety. It's not like he said oh my goodness let's swing by and see if she's still there. He didn't say let's alert transportation. He didn't say I'm so sorry I messed up. He shrugged his shoulders, said oh well and pulled off. Would you want this person responsible for your child?

I am not the only parent with this kind of story. I am making it public because there have been soooo many issues that are endangering our children, not just mine. My concern is for all of them as I would think everyone's should be. I heard a story of drivers telling kids to sit on the floor of an overcrowded bus. Maybe I should just sit quiet, worry about my own child and be selfish and self-centered, insensitive and uncaring then maybe I wouldn't get such nasty comments.

ldestefano63Sep 7, 2012

Bus driver sounds like a piece of work but there are other alternatives - like driving your kids to school yourself - schools are tax paid as well as the buses and gas - so take and pick up your kids every day - Wake county school system has been a mess and doesn't look like its getting any better

frsandiSep 7, 2012

...they are to take the child BACK TO SCHOOL. This is the policy. Why am I going to the news? Because this man endangered my child. If someone had snatched her then these same people would be enraged. Just because she was found does not make this inexcusable. I want him fired not just for breaking a policy that could have resulted in an abduction and possible molestation, rape or murder of a 6 yr old but because he showed ABSOLUTELY NO CONCERN AT ALL when I informed him that she was a first-grader and is never to be dropped off alone. My daughter showed more common sense than this grown man. She was there for 1/2 hour. She didn't take the stranger's hand who found her even though she was a woman. She was able to gather herself and eventually guide them to where she lived. I am not less responsible of a parent than one who is able to pick their child up. What kind of insult is that to all the parents who are not afforded that kind of flexibility? Shame on you.

kehlerjSep 7, 2012

I work in a WCPSS and we have tier three bus routes. Our dismissal bell rings at 3:45. At 4:50, I was making my rounds to collect instructional materials and we still had a bus full of children sitting in classrooms that had not been picked up. A student commented to me, " I bet if I am still here at 8:00, my dad will come get me." UNACCEPTABLE!

kbo80Sep 7, 2012

This is why my pre-k child that ask me daily to ride the bus gets dropped off and picked up. There are too many sex offenders and criminals in general to drop kids off anywhere.